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View all search resultsCouncillors vying for regional head positions should not be required to resign: Legislator
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A foreign observer monitors voting at Pondok Bambu women’s prison in East Jakarta. One hundred and fifty seven prisoners voted in the Jakarta gubernatorial election at the prison on Feb. 15. (JP/Wendra Ajistyatama)
T
he deputy chairman of House of Representative’s Commission II overseeing bureaucratic reform, Lukman Edy, has suggested that members of regional legislative councils should not be obliged to resign if they run for regional head positions.
The 2016 Regional Elections Law stipulates that regional councillors shall resign should they be nominated as regional head candidates.
Lukman argued, however, that such a requirement could make councillors hesitant to become candidates while they actually had potential and the capacity to serve as regional heads.
“Parties' best members may think they could lose the councillor post [if they lose the race], therefore, they do not want to leave their legislative posts,” said the National Awakening Party (PKB) politician.
That is why the simultaneous elections in 101 regions, last month, lacked quality politicians among candidates, he added.
(Read also: Security precautions in place for regional election dispute hearings)
Lukman also said many of the election winners were incumbent candidates because the law only required incumbents to take leave during the campaign period.
He said he believed by scrapping the requirement for councillors to resign, regional elections would see more good candidates in addition to the incumbents. (bbs)
